Message in a Bottle [LGBTQ+] [ONC 2024]

Chapter Nineteen

The darkness had only just begun to shift when Eli finally decided to get up. He'd slept fitfully, spending the few hours he had to sleep rolling around in bed and startling at every small sound outside his window. After falling to sleep, he kicked the blankets off and slowly dragged himself to his feet in the semi-darkness.

He turned towards the window, staring at the horizon as the sun began to peak over the trees. The sky slowly turned a pale pink colour and Eli knew he had to leave to avoid being caught by his father. With work to do on the farm, and Eli still not allowed to work, his father had been getting up earlier to ensure the work was completed. Eli needed to be out of the house before his father.

"No turning back," Eli muttered.

Without making a sound, Eli dressed quickly. He reached under his bed and grabbed the bag he'd been filling for several days — now heavy with clothes. Although he was only going to the city to take the exam, he wasn't sure if he wanted to return home. Eli knew what would await him when he returned.

Eli crept across his small bedroom with the bag slung over his shoulder, the knife tucked into the belt of his trousers, and a letter he'd written for his mother stowed in his pocket. The bag weighed him down more than he expected. He stumbled down the ladder, pausing at every creak of wood or shuffle of his clothing. His father had never been a heavy sleeper.

He pulled the letter from his pocket and placed it amongst his mothers mending materials, hopeful she'd find it long after he was gone. Eli paused by the small table, even though he didn't have much time, and let the memories of his life in the farmhouse flood his mind.

The farmhouse was the only house he'd ever known. He'd learnt to read the small wooden table, completed his school work at the worn-down writing desk in his room, and enjoyed family suppers day in and day out, but it hadn't always been perfect. His father's violent actions, the yelling matches over chores, and the disappointment that stared at him during every supper.

He'd faced the good and the bad in that farmhouse, but it was time to move on.

Eli glanced around the room one last time, his father snoring loudly in the adjoining master bedroom. It was now or never. He readjusted the placement of his bag on his shoulder and slipped from the room without looking back.

Despite it still being early, the air was warm and humid. Beads of sweat prickled on Eli's forehead as he crossed the yellowing-grass towards the mass of trees. His bag weighed heavy on his shoulder, almost dragging his arm down with the weight of the clothes he'd packed. Although he hadn't been walking for long, his lip became more pronounced with each step he took and he wished he hadn't packed so much.

He trudged through the fields as fast as his leg would allow him, enjoying the slight breeze that came with the morning sun rising above. The breeze helped to cool his warm skin, though he continued to sweat thanks to the added weight on his back and shoulder. Eli was surprised by how quiet everything was so early in the morning. The birds were only just beginning to wake, the breeze wasn't quite strong enough to shake the trees, and a still silence settled across everything.

It was a pleasant send off after his sixteen years living there.

The closer he got to the pond, the more the nerves built up in his chest. He knew Samuel was reluctant to go, but there was a small slither of hope that he might. Eli clung to it as though it were the final breath in his lungs. He needed him to be there.

Eli approached the pond, keeping his eyes open for any sign of Samuel, but no one was there. The pond sat solitary in the rising sunlight, the water still in the early morning air with not even a fish swimming to the surface out of curiosity. He smiled at the memories of all the time he spent with his feet dangling in the water and the small blades of grass tickling the backs of his legs. Some of his favourite moments were spent by the pond.

He stopped by the water, watching the way the early morning light reflected off the surface; pinks, reds, blues, or mingling together to mimic the sky above him. Eli knew he didn't have much time if he wanted to make it to the station before the train left, but he wanted to wait that little bit longer. He needed to be certain that Samuel wasn't coming.

Around him the air was still and silent. He listened to the soft sounds of his breathing, of his heart hammering away in chest. If Samuel was coming, he'd be there already, yet still he waited. Eli listened for the slightest movement in the trees behind him, for the smallest of footsteps in the calming morning air, but there was only silence.

Eli sighed. That small slither of hope he clung to disappeared with his breath, melting into the warm air and disappearing, though he knew he should never have hoped. Rarely do things work out the way he wanted them to. Part of him wondered what he would do if he failed the exam, but he shook the thought from his mind.

He had a train to catch.

Reluctantly, Eli turned from the pond and started in the direction of the train station, but he didn't make it very far.

"Eli!"

He glanced over his shoulder, watching Samuel and Victoria stumble out of the trees, Samuel holding onto both her arm and a large bag. "I thought you weren't coming," Eli said.

"To tell you the truth, I wasn't going to." Samuel frowned a little. "I've been going over it in my mind these past few days, trying to decide, but I wasn't sure."

"Then why—"

"—I made him," Victoria said. "I think you're both insane for doing this, but I know you need to. Both of you. I'll explain everything to your parents if they ask and I expect a letter to at least know you at least got there safely."

"I will. I quite enjoy writing letters now."

Victoria laughed. She led Samuel over to him and Eli accepted his arm to lead him through the trees. "Now go, or you'll miss the train."

"Thank you."

Victoria nodded, a small smile on her lips. Eli looked at Samuel whose brown eyes almost glistened with excitement, Eli felt the same way.

"When you made your wish, did you ever think it would end like this?"

Samuel shook his head. "Never, but I'm glad I made it. I'm all the more glad that you were the one to find it. Now, we've got an adventure to go on."

Eli laughed, unable to help himself, and the two of them left the pond, the village, and their lives behind, not knowing where the next steps might take them.

~~~

First Published - April 23rd, 2024